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- Niketown, OR
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B230FT My First Rebuild
- Thread starter Wolfie
- Start date
c1800
Member
- Joined
- Jun 28, 2014
- Location
- A small village of one.
Nice
- Joined
- May 11, 2007
- Location
- Niketown, OR
Wouldn’t keep my hopes up on finding out what happened next, all those years ago
dl242gt
The world of the smiling Dogo
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2002
- Location
- S NJ, a suburb of Phila.
Is this the car in the crusher picture RWC likes to use?
PCH
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2008
- Location
- Oxnard, SoCal
...
Spedewagon2
New member
- Joined
- Nov 11, 2007
- Location
- New England
Pointless tube
The tube may appear to do nothing but show the oil where the pan is, but what it really does is keep the liquid oil separate from the crankcase gasses and keeps the gases flowing in the right direction. Positive Crankcase Ventilation depends on that tube being long enough to submerge in the oil pan.
The tube may appear to do nothing but show the oil where the pan is, but what it really does is keep the liquid oil separate from the crankcase gasses and keeps the gases flowing in the right direction. Positive Crankcase Ventilation depends on that tube being long enough to submerge in the oil pan.
silver1993240Wagon
Member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2023
- Location
- Littleton New Hampshire
Ipd volvo or fcp uroUpdate.
I Called and the head work is not done.
the head is getting checked out. new seals new gaskets ECT. and a 3 angle valve job. that should be finished wednesday... but it's okay....
Last night i pulled the rest of the crap off the block, and pulled the oil Pump
the tapping i heard and thought it was coming from the heads (but it also sounded like it could be from the bottom)
was the oil pump i found this out when i took the pump out and heard it.
Ok now there is the plastic hose that from from the crank case vent box (where the flame trap would be)
what's that hose called and where do i get a new one?
and the psudo flame trap vent box
Now for the Ugly!!!
this is the #1 Cylinder? closest to the firewall is #1 right?
as you see, it's not in as great of shape as the #4? (close to the timeing belt)
it's in better shape, but it rained one night and the tarp blew off and it rusted.
and now for the ever famous and saught after OIL SQUIRTERS! Arn't they a beautiful cruddy brown!
Stay tuned to this thread for more exciteing updates!
bobxyz
Board Member
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2014
- Location
- Boulder CO
Years ago, before this thread was sticky'd, I'd typed out a bunch of engine rebuild suggestions in a different thread but those seem to have been lost in one of the server crashes. I'm re-posting them here since someone was again asking for engine rebuild advice.
I've rebuilt a few engines over the years but am far from an expert. That being said, here's some advice for reassembling the engine.
I'll assume that you have a good shop manual for torques, orientations, and assembly sequences. Bentley is great for the 240s and redblocks, but doesn't cover the 740/940 Mitsubishi turbos or 16V heads. If it's a B21 or B23, the TP30170 engine reconditioning guide is available at ozvolvo.org/archive . If it's a B230, you want TP30927, but I haven't seen that one free online. Bentley has most (or all?) of the same info. I haven't used the Haynes manuals, so I can't comment on how they stack up.
Beware that some of the English measurements in the greenbooks are wrong. The metric measurements are OK.
If you're working with a machine shop that's not familiar with redblock engines, make sure that they understand that the target piston-to-cylinder wall clearance is very tight compared to most other engines of the era. The target clearance is often stamped on the top of the replacement pistons, or included with the piston paperwork.
Some of the replacement main bearings are just for undersize rod/main journals, and some are also for oversize thrust surfaces. The bearing style needs to match the crank machining. There are 3 bearings for the aux shaft, and 2 of them are _almost_ the same size. Make sure you know which is which, and where they go or else your aux shaft will be very hard to rotate.
The cam caps are machined in place, which means you need to keep them with the original head and in proper order. Likewise for the rod and main caps, but those are at least numbered.
If you live in a humid area, make sure that the machined block surfaces are always coated with a light spray of oil or WD-40 to prevent surface rust. Keep the parts in plastic bags to keep moisture out and and to keep dust/dirt off. Make sure your work area is as clean and dust free as possible. Next time you're at the machine shop, ask to see their engine assembly area for reference.
The top of the block and the bottom of the head are very precisely machined, especially if preped for a MLS head gasket. Do everything you can to protect those surfaces and not scratch them up. If you're going to paint the block, I'd put on a layer of masking tape as soon as you get it back from the shop. Taping on a layer of cardboard to the block and head would be good too. Aluminum and iron are soft compared to tool steel - it takes just one dropped wrench to damage the head/block and send you back to the machine shop for resurfacing and humiliation.
For assembly, you'll need a squirt can of engine oil (non-synthetic), some sort of engine assembly lube, and some special flat tappet cam lube. You'll also want a bottle of ZDDP oil additive for the break in run. ATF can be used to wipe down the cylinders before assembly. The _ONLY_ place you should use RTV sealant is just a bit in the sharp corners of the valve cover gasket. Otherwise, the standard gaskets should seal fine on their own. If you just can't help yourself, you could use some Permatex Aviation Gasket Sealer #3 (gas/oil resistant, non-hardening). Generally, you should lightly oil bolts & bolt heads/washers before assembly.
You might want to use some medium Blue loctite on the main crankshaft bolt. I don't remember if there are any other bolts that should be loctited? You'll need the B230 crankshaft pulley holder tool. (For the B21/B23 you can make your own with a strong wooden board.)
An air compressor and blowgun nozzle are nice for cleaning off any dust, and for drying out any solvent, just before lube and assembly. I'll use brake cleaner if the ventilation is good, or isopropyl alcohol if indoors. I normally use standard paper towels but the blue lint-free towels are better.
A basic metric thread chaser set https://www.amazon.com/Lang-Tools-2584-15-Piece-Restorer/dp/B000XJ48V0 helps clean up any bolt/nut that doesn't go back together smoothly. For the head bolts, the normal chaser is too short. Instead, you can hacksaw a couple slots in the end of a scrap head bolt. Blow out any blind holes (like the head bolt holes) with compressed air before assembly.
If you want to double check the main and rod bearing clearances, you can get a strip of Plastigage. The main bearings are easy to check but it's a little difficult to torque down the rod bolts without moving the rod and smearing the Plastigage. Some of the other less precise clearances can be checked with a feeler gauge. To check the bore diameters requires a special $$$ bore gauge, and the skill to use it. A cheap dial indicator and stand are good for checking piston protrusion, and a basic micrometer is used to check the cam shim thickness.
There are a couple alignment sleeves that go into the top of the block. They're removed during machining. To re-install, you can initially align them with big drill bit, then use a wooden block to carefully tap the sleeves into place.
When assembling the pistons and rods, the wrist pins have an extremely close fit but should slide in and out with [strong] thumb pressure. If not, a heat gun may help. Never ever use force or a hammer, or you risk permanently galling the surface, leading to eventual rod/piston failure. If you have problems, stop and take the parts back to the machine shop for expert assistance.
I'd check with your piston supplier to find out if the rings are pre-gaped correctly for your application. If so, I'd leave them in place, without checking the gaps, instead of risking breaking one during R&R. Beware, some rings have a dot, or other mark, to denote the Top face. Install them upside down and you'll have excess oil consumption and blowby.
When inserting the rods&pistons, cut a couple 8" pieces of rubber hose and put those over the rod bolts to guide the rod end to the crank without risk of scratching the bearing surfaces. When installing the pistons, oil the piston/rings/compressor, and make sure your ring compressor is tight to the top of the block before pushing/tapping the piston into the block. Don't use force if the piston doesn't want to go in, or you may break a ring. The machine shop should have slightly chamfered the tops of the cylinders in the block to help the rings go in smoothly (and to eliminate hot spots).
There's a metal oil tube that goes between the oil pump and the block. There have been numerous cases where the gaskets on this tube have come out, resulting in low, or no, oil pressure. Before assembling this tube, put a gasket on one end and fit just that end into the block. Mark how far the tube goes into the block. Repeat for the the oil pump end. Then, after clamping down the breather box drain, when you bolt in the oil pump and tube, you have references on each end to make sure that the tube is fully seated.
Make sure you install the breather box drain tube and clamp while it's easily accessible. It can't be installed correctly from the outside.
There are nice $$$ tools for installing the various shaft seals, or you can slowly and carefully go round and round tapping in each seal with a block of wood. Watch carefully when first sliding the seal over the shaft that the sealing lip goes on right and doesn't get turned over. For some of the seals, you can pick an installation depth so that the lip of the seal rides on a clean spot on the shaft.
After the engine is buttoned up, but before installing the timing belt, you can add a quart of oil and spin the aux shaft to prime the oil pump and prefill the oil passages. Stop when oil starts to pool by the cam lifters. You'll need a drill to spin the shaft, or a lot of stamina to crank it around by hand for long enough.
If it's going to be a high performance engine, adding oil squirters is helpful (see stickied topics). You may also want to search and read up on "tight squish" to help reduce knocking.
Elring gaskets are reasonably good. You can ask here if there are specific gaskets where it's worth paying the extra $$$ for Genuine Volvo.
I'm sure there are lots more details and tips, but this should be a good start.
-Bob
I've rebuilt a few engines over the years but am far from an expert. That being said, here's some advice for reassembling the engine.
I'll assume that you have a good shop manual for torques, orientations, and assembly sequences. Bentley is great for the 240s and redblocks, but doesn't cover the 740/940 Mitsubishi turbos or 16V heads. If it's a B21 or B23, the TP30170 engine reconditioning guide is available at ozvolvo.org/archive . If it's a B230, you want TP30927, but I haven't seen that one free online. Bentley has most (or all?) of the same info. I haven't used the Haynes manuals, so I can't comment on how they stack up.
Beware that some of the English measurements in the greenbooks are wrong. The metric measurements are OK.
If you're working with a machine shop that's not familiar with redblock engines, make sure that they understand that the target piston-to-cylinder wall clearance is very tight compared to most other engines of the era. The target clearance is often stamped on the top of the replacement pistons, or included with the piston paperwork.
Some of the replacement main bearings are just for undersize rod/main journals, and some are also for oversize thrust surfaces. The bearing style needs to match the crank machining. There are 3 bearings for the aux shaft, and 2 of them are _almost_ the same size. Make sure you know which is which, and where they go or else your aux shaft will be very hard to rotate.
The cam caps are machined in place, which means you need to keep them with the original head and in proper order. Likewise for the rod and main caps, but those are at least numbered.
If you live in a humid area, make sure that the machined block surfaces are always coated with a light spray of oil or WD-40 to prevent surface rust. Keep the parts in plastic bags to keep moisture out and and to keep dust/dirt off. Make sure your work area is as clean and dust free as possible. Next time you're at the machine shop, ask to see their engine assembly area for reference.
The top of the block and the bottom of the head are very precisely machined, especially if preped for a MLS head gasket. Do everything you can to protect those surfaces and not scratch them up. If you're going to paint the block, I'd put on a layer of masking tape as soon as you get it back from the shop. Taping on a layer of cardboard to the block and head would be good too. Aluminum and iron are soft compared to tool steel - it takes just one dropped wrench to damage the head/block and send you back to the machine shop for resurfacing and humiliation.
For assembly, you'll need a squirt can of engine oil (non-synthetic), some sort of engine assembly lube, and some special flat tappet cam lube. You'll also want a bottle of ZDDP oil additive for the break in run. ATF can be used to wipe down the cylinders before assembly. The _ONLY_ place you should use RTV sealant is just a bit in the sharp corners of the valve cover gasket. Otherwise, the standard gaskets should seal fine on their own. If you just can't help yourself, you could use some Permatex Aviation Gasket Sealer #3 (gas/oil resistant, non-hardening). Generally, you should lightly oil bolts & bolt heads/washers before assembly.
You might want to use some medium Blue loctite on the main crankshaft bolt. I don't remember if there are any other bolts that should be loctited? You'll need the B230 crankshaft pulley holder tool. (For the B21/B23 you can make your own with a strong wooden board.)
An air compressor and blowgun nozzle are nice for cleaning off any dust, and for drying out any solvent, just before lube and assembly. I'll use brake cleaner if the ventilation is good, or isopropyl alcohol if indoors. I normally use standard paper towels but the blue lint-free towels are better.
A basic metric thread chaser set https://www.amazon.com/Lang-Tools-2584-15-Piece-Restorer/dp/B000XJ48V0 helps clean up any bolt/nut that doesn't go back together smoothly. For the head bolts, the normal chaser is too short. Instead, you can hacksaw a couple slots in the end of a scrap head bolt. Blow out any blind holes (like the head bolt holes) with compressed air before assembly.
If you want to double check the main and rod bearing clearances, you can get a strip of Plastigage. The main bearings are easy to check but it's a little difficult to torque down the rod bolts without moving the rod and smearing the Plastigage. Some of the other less precise clearances can be checked with a feeler gauge. To check the bore diameters requires a special $$$ bore gauge, and the skill to use it. A cheap dial indicator and stand are good for checking piston protrusion, and a basic micrometer is used to check the cam shim thickness.
There are a couple alignment sleeves that go into the top of the block. They're removed during machining. To re-install, you can initially align them with big drill bit, then use a wooden block to carefully tap the sleeves into place.
When assembling the pistons and rods, the wrist pins have an extremely close fit but should slide in and out with [strong] thumb pressure. If not, a heat gun may help. Never ever use force or a hammer, or you risk permanently galling the surface, leading to eventual rod/piston failure. If you have problems, stop and take the parts back to the machine shop for expert assistance.
I'd check with your piston supplier to find out if the rings are pre-gaped correctly for your application. If so, I'd leave them in place, without checking the gaps, instead of risking breaking one during R&R. Beware, some rings have a dot, or other mark, to denote the Top face. Install them upside down and you'll have excess oil consumption and blowby.
When inserting the rods&pistons, cut a couple 8" pieces of rubber hose and put those over the rod bolts to guide the rod end to the crank without risk of scratching the bearing surfaces. When installing the pistons, oil the piston/rings/compressor, and make sure your ring compressor is tight to the top of the block before pushing/tapping the piston into the block. Don't use force if the piston doesn't want to go in, or you may break a ring. The machine shop should have slightly chamfered the tops of the cylinders in the block to help the rings go in smoothly (and to eliminate hot spots).
There's a metal oil tube that goes between the oil pump and the block. There have been numerous cases where the gaskets on this tube have come out, resulting in low, or no, oil pressure. Before assembling this tube, put a gasket on one end and fit just that end into the block. Mark how far the tube goes into the block. Repeat for the the oil pump end. Then, after clamping down the breather box drain, when you bolt in the oil pump and tube, you have references on each end to make sure that the tube is fully seated.
Make sure you install the breather box drain tube and clamp while it's easily accessible. It can't be installed correctly from the outside.
There are nice $$$ tools for installing the various shaft seals, or you can slowly and carefully go round and round tapping in each seal with a block of wood. Watch carefully when first sliding the seal over the shaft that the sealing lip goes on right and doesn't get turned over. For some of the seals, you can pick an installation depth so that the lip of the seal rides on a clean spot on the shaft.
After the engine is buttoned up, but before installing the timing belt, you can add a quart of oil and spin the aux shaft to prime the oil pump and prefill the oil passages. Stop when oil starts to pool by the cam lifters. You'll need a drill to spin the shaft, or a lot of stamina to crank it around by hand for long enough.
If it's going to be a high performance engine, adding oil squirters is helpful (see stickied topics). You may also want to search and read up on "tight squish" to help reduce knocking.
Elring gaskets are reasonably good. You can ask here if there are specific gaskets where it's worth paying the extra $$$ for Genuine Volvo.
I'm sure there are lots more details and tips, but this should be a good start.
-Bob
InfiniteInnovator
New member
- Joined
- May 18, 2024
- Location
- los angeles, california
Congratulations on starting your first rebuild with the B230FT! That's a classic engine with a lot of potential. I'm excited to see your progress and any tips or challenges you encounter. Keep us updated with photos and insights! Good luck! 
